Word.ws English Dictionary

turning back the clock

turning back the clock is the present participle and gerund of turn back the clock.

Meaning of turn back the clock

Verb

turn back the clock (third-person singular simple present turns back the clock, present participle turning back the clock, simple past and past participle turned back the clock)

  1. (figuratively, idiomatic) To return to a previous state.
    • We had a terrible year so we agreed to turn back the clock and go on as if it hadn't happened.

Questions about turning back the clock

What is turning back the clock the present participle and gerund of?
Turning back the clock is the present participle and gerund of turn back the clock.

Words near turning back the clock in the dictionary

  1. turning around
  2. turning around one's finger
  3. turning aside
  4. turning away
  5. turning back
  6. turning back the clock
  7. turning center
  8. turning centers
  9. turning circle
  10. turning circles
  11. turning coat

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: turning back the clock (page history and authors); turn back the clock (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated:

Cite this entry: “turning back the clock.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/turning_back_the_clock. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.